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6-17 fathers day Rediscovering the adventure with Dad
(by Trish Reynolds - June 16, 2008)
Sean and his dad Jude Kondra with their new friend Yoko at Discovery Cove, Orlando, Fl.
When my son, Jude was 5 years old, his father took him on a vacation to Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. It was his first trip on a plane and his first vacation away with his dad, just the two of them. He came home with a sunburn, a stuffed Mickey Mouse that was bigger than he was and memories to last him a lifetime. It was probably what defined the best of their relationship for years to come.
Today Jude juggles a successful career with being a single dad himself. Sometimes soccer practices and swimming lessons take a back seat to work and classes. His 8-year-old son Sean cherishes the time he gets to spend with his father and they both wish they had more time to spend together sharing their love of their favorite video game, Madden ‘08 for their PS3.
So on a cold wintry night in February when the family was snowed in together with Nana (that’s me!), a plan was hatched and arrangements were made. Spring Break this year would be the adventure of a lifetime for Sean and his dad, retracing the journey taken 30 years ago.
This wasn’t Sean’s first plane trip, but it was the first one he would remember so he was excited and full of questions. He had a window seat sharing the view with his dad. In preparation for this trip, Sean had been taking swimming lessons, and he was anxious to get into the pool at the hotel. There was no hitch in Orlando– rental car was picked up, hotel was found, bags were dumped in the room and the pool was used far into the night!
Jude was impressed with Sean’s improved skill in the water and they spent hours together playing and splashing. Morning pool time became the ritual of the week. Before anything else a nice swim in the heated water got the day started.
Wild Kingdom was first up and Sean and Jude enjoyed their safari’s together, both African and Asian, lions and tigers and bears indeed! The highlight, however, was the wild river rafting adventure…which they enjoyed three times, emerging soaking wet and laughing into the heat of a Florida spring day.
At Universal Studios Islands of Adventure, the Jurassic Park Ride was the experience of the day. Escaping the massive jaws of the T-Rex dripping with drool and surviving the plunge over a falls, splashing safely into the waters below was memorable. The Spiderman Adventure ride was impressive and meaningful to both father and son as Spidey is a truly trans-generational superhero. They were a bit disappointed that the Simpson’s Ride was not yet open but found another river rafting ride in Popeye’s Cove on Cartoon Island to console themselves. Of course no visit to Universal would be complete without the “Jaws” boat ride, which was not Sean’s favorite.
The day before heading home was the main climax of our trip, a day spent at Discovery Cove capped with a one-on-one dolphin interaction experience for Jude and Sean.
It was a hot and brilliantly sunny day when we arrived at Discovery Cove and checked in.
The lagoon pool was heavenly, warm fresh water surrounded by white sands with palms spaced perfectly for shade. Jude and Sean spent their time investigating the lagoon, complete with water falls, caves and a lazy meandering river. There was a coral reef to explore and manta rays to feed and the two of them did it all.
With the afternoon well along it was time for the dolphin swim.
Sean was showing a bit of trepidation as they entered the water with such huge animals swimming around them and stayed firmly connected to Jude. They were accompanied by a trainer and quickly taught the basics of dolphin/human communications. It seemed to mostly involve tossing fish to the dolphin. Soon Sean was feeling comfortable enough to touch and pet the dolphin named Yoko. With his dad’s encouragement, he went out to the deep water and grabbed hold of Yoko’s dorsal fin for a ride around the lagoon. Jude followed for his own tow with Sean watching rapt, as his father seemed to glide through the water. Then they posed together for a photograph.
The next day, the plane was leaving at 8:15 p.m., so there was time to hit SeaWorld for a few hours. Sean and his dad visited the shark exhibit and saw the penguins, then fed more dolphins waiting for the show to begin. The Shamu show was another highlight of the vacation, telling the story of a boy who loved orcas and grew up to work with them every day.
Due to poor weather in Newark the plane was delayed leaving Orlando. When it landed everyone was tired, and not looking for-ward to going back to work and school the next day. I went to get the car, leaving Jude and Sean to find the luggage. When I pulled up, there they were in front of the terminal sitting side by side bags piled all around, Sean with his stuffed dolphin in his lap snuggled sleepy eyed against his father. They had found more than just the luggage…they had found each other.
Work will sometimes interfere with soccer and school, and Jude will sometimes miss Sean’s games or school plays. But they will always have the memories of a week spent celebrating each other when they shared an adventure together.
To my son and to all the Dad’s out there a very happy Father’s Day.
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